Barça battle for a hard-fought 3-1 win over Rayo Vallecano.

Messi lead the charge as Barça battled back from being down a goal for a 3-1 victory. Rayo’s Raul de Tomas shocked the Blaugrana faithful inside the Camp Nou with his goal in the 24th minute. Barça equalized in the 38th minute when Piqué headed down Messi’s cross. Messi then scored from the spot after Semedo was brought down inside the box to give the Blaugrana the lead in the 50th minute. Luis Suárez scored the insurance goal to seal the win nine minutes from the final whistle. This win meant that FC Barcelona remained seven points ahead of second-placed Atletico Madrid, who beat Leganes 1-0, earlier that day. They will now shift their attention to Wednesday’s important encounter against Lyon as they try to clinch a spot to the Champions League Quarter-Finals at the Camp Nou.